Help needed, Nikon FE

I have a Nikon FE that needs help.

Sometimes, when I attempt to take a picture, the mirror stays up and the shutter does not fire which leaves the film advance locked. I can manually reset the mirror and remove the baseplate to reset the linkage to make it work again but I don't know why its having this problem.

I bought it recently and it has always been like this for me. This problem happens even on m90 and bulb settings and with new batteries.
The meter does appear to work properly and the battery check light does light up. I have tried 2 different new batteries.

Usually, this problem happens on the first attempted exposure after turning the camera on. If I manually reset everything I am then able to take pictures as much as I want until I turn off the camera for a period of time.

That has happened to me only once with my FE... when I received it. After unjamming it and replacing the battery the jam never happened again. I'd start looking into the possiblility that the linkage that jams is either bent or unlubricated -- making it more prone to jamming than it should be.

I don't know what, if any, effect turning the camera on and off has on this jam. I have a MD-11 on mine and recently found out that both the MD and the camera batteries will drain if the MD is not switched off after use. But that is just an interesting fact that might have absolutely nothing to do with your jam problem.

Fortunately, there is a camera repair shop here so I brought it in for a CLA. The tech checked it over and said the previous owner had oiled the shutter which was at least part of the problem. Should be good as new in a few days.

I've been having this problem for a year now with my FE. I've had it serviced twice, first time was a CLA and the second time was a more intense servicing of the innards. It went away for a while, but is now happening again. I don't know why or how, but I am sick and tired of it and it makes me want to throw the damn FE out the window. It's a shame because I really like the camera.

I always unjam it by grabbing one of the curtains' circular arm/elbow thingy on the right side of the shutter with some tweezers, manually advancing it down and then releasing it. That unjams the shutter and the mirror comes down when you advance the film advance. However, this has not fixed the root of the problem. There must be some underlying internal misalignment or something like that.

It is interesting that suddenly there seems to be a rash of problems with the FE. My original FE I got some two years ago still works fine, a second body jammed up only once a while ago but only with the winder on it. It has not jammed again with or without the winder since.

Might I suggest if you really like your FE get a thorough CLA from a reputible repair shop and make sure you can explain how to duplicate your problem or find another body. So far, I have not had a dud from KEH yet......FE availability can be limited.....if your FE is in excellent cosmetic condition, it would be a no brainer for me for the CLA. Excellent bodies are becoming harder and harder to find....